The Pittsburgh Penguins just added a familiar face to the front office. On Friday, the team announced Ron Francis as Special Advisor, Hockey Operations. It’s a move that brings a two-time Stanley Cup winner back into the fold, but his role here goes beyond just a ceremonial nod to the past.
Francis will work directly with the hockey operations leadership group, helping with strategic planning, roster construction, and internal systems. He’ll also chip in during key moments of the year — training camp, the draft, trade deadline, free agency — plus help out with the minor league and player development staffs. That’s a lot of input across a lot of areas. The team didn’t give him one specific decision-making role. Instead, he’s there to advise on multiple fronts.
Francis, 63, knows this organization well. He won Cups with the Penguins in 1991 and 1992 as a player. Over 23 NHL seasons, he racked up 1,798 points (549 goals, 1,249 assists) in 1,731 games. That’s fifth all-time in points. His 1,249 assists put him behind only Wayne Gretzky in league history. He also topped 500 goals, something only 50 players have ever done. Drafted fourth overall in 1981 from the Soo Greyhounds, his number 10 hangs in the rafters there and in Carolina. His trophy case includes a Selke (1995), three Lady Byngs (1995, 1998, 2002), and a King Clancy (2002). His best season came in 1995-96 when he put up 119 points. And in eight seasons with Pittsburgh, he had 613 points in 533 games.
After retiring following the 2003-04 season, Francis moved into the front office with Carolina in 2006. He spent 12 years there, eventually becoming General Manager in 2014. He was part of drafting Sebastian Aho (2015), Jacob Slavin (2012), and Jordan Staal (2012). But his tenure also included some heavy long-term contracts: Victor Rask’s six-year, $24 million deal and Scott Darling’s four-year, $16.6 million contract.
In 2019, Francis became the first General Manager of the Seattle Kraken. He was later promoted to President of Hockey Operations in 2025. He built the expansion team from scratch — roster construction, the expansion draft, setting up the AHL affiliate in Coachella Valley. Seattle’s best season under him was 2022-23, when the team went 46-28-8, cracked 100 points, finished fourth in the Pacific, and made the playoffs for the first time. He also stocked the prospect pool pretty well through drafts. But there were also some big deals that didn’t age great — Philipp Grubauer, Chandler Stephenson, Andre Burakovsky among them.
The Penguins are coming off a 98-point season where they made the playoffs for the first time since 2022, only to lose in the first round to the Philadelphia Flyers. Bringing in Francis gives them a guy who’s seen it all as a player and an executive. His familiarity with Pittsburgh doesn’t hurt either. As the team tries to balance competing now with planning for later, his voice in the room should carry some weight.
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